Welcome friends. Thankyou for visiting this web site. I have always loved to teach the Word. Too many of God's people let their pastor or teacher do all their studying for them. But if the Bible is the Word of God, shouldn't you take a serious look at it yourself? To study and discover things on your own is both faith building and spiritually rewarding. It is exciting to discover the treasures of God's Word. Studying the Bible doesn't have to be a chore, it can be a most thrilling adventure. I hope to stimulate thought by this web site, provoke you to want to dig into the scriptures yourself, and honor the God of Israel, and our Saviour, the Messiah our soon coming King.

Did the Jews really kill Jesus? by Alon Ronk I heard it said many times before that the Jews killed Jesus their own Messiah. This is used to justify one's hate for the Jewish people. A well known preacher from Atlanta, Georgia, Charles Stanley by name, once said, he does not understand how a christian can be so satisfied knowing so little about the Bible. I agree with him 100%. The accusation made against the Jews is not the result of serious Bible study but rather the parroting of answers heard from others. I wish to begin with a passage from Luke 23:23. "And they were instant with loud voices, requiring that He might be crucified. And the voices of them and of the chief priests prevailed". How is it that they could change so quickly from, "Blessed be the King that cometh in the name of the Lord: Peace in heaven, and glory in the highest;" - Lk.19:38. Here they were shouting Hosannah, Blessed be the King etc and in just a week's time were calling for His crucifixion. I myself have heard this preached although the preacher's I heard were not trying to use it to condemn Jews. But what is going on here? There are several things of importance to note. First of all notice that it was not the common man in the streets who instigated the calling for Jesus' crucifixion. It was the Jewish leadership. Pay attention to the fact that our opening verse says, "...And the voices of them and of the chief priests prevailed". Compare that with Mark 15:10-11, "For he [Pilate] knew that the chief priests had delivered Him for envy. But the chief priests moved the people, that he should rather release Barabbas unto them". The biggest concern of the priests was the loss of their power, position, and wealth. They also feared that Jesus would reap a large harvest of souls. " John 11:45-48, "Then many of the Jews which came to Mary, and had seen the things which Jesus did, believed on him. But some of them went their ways to the Pharisees, and told them what things Jesus had done. Then gathered the chief priests and the Pharisees a council, and said, What do we? for this man doeth many miracles. If we let him thus alone, all men will believe on him: and the Romans shall come and take away both our place and nation". And John 12:9-11, " Much people of the Jews therefore knew that he was there: and they came not for Jesus' sake only, but that they might see Lazarus also, whom he had raised from the dead. But the chief priests consulted that they might put Lazarus also to death; Because that by reason of him many of the Jews went away, and believed on Jesus". And John 12:19, " The Pharisees therefore said among themselves, Perceive ye how ye prevail nothing? behold, the world is gone after Him". Also, who was it that the priests stirred up? Was it those who had known Jesus and heard Him teach? Perhaps a few, such as Judas. But you must remember what time of year this event takes place. It was the Passover. There were three times a year when Jewish males were required to go up to Jerusalem: Passover (pesach), Pentecost (shavuot), and the feast of Tabernacles (sukkot). of course, many also brought their families with them. I could not even begin to guess the number of people who were in Jerusalem at that time. Almost two months later for shavuot they are either still there or have come back. Acts 2:5 says, "And there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, out of every nation under heaven". Verse 9-11 gives us an example of where they all came from: " Parthians, and Medes, and Elamites, and the dwellers in Mesopotamia, and in Judaea, and Cappadocia, in Pontus, and Asia, Phrygia, and Pamphylia, in Egypt, and in the parts of Libya about Cyrene, and strangers of Rome, Jews an d proselytes, Cretes and Arabians, we do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God". So here is another important detail. There were alot of believers in Israel who had accepted the Messiah and did not reject Him. There were also many who were leaning that way. At least 8000 embraced the faith in the early chapters of Acts; 3000 on Shavuot and 5000 more after that. Among them a large number of priests. Acts 6:7, " And the word of God increased; and the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly; and a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith." However, at the same time, there were a large number of Jews who had come up to Jerusalem for Pesach who had not even heard of Jesus. It was these people that the chief priests were able to sway to demand the crucifixion of Jesus. Let's read Matthew 21:1-11. " And when they drew nigh unto Jerusalem, and were come to Bethphage, unto the mount of Olives, then sent Jesus two disciples, Saying unto them, Go into the village over against you, and straightway ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her: loose them, and bring them unto me. And if any man say ought unto you, ye shall say, The Lord hath need of them; and straightway he will send them. All this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, Tell ye the daughter of Sion, Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek, and sitting upon an ass, and a colt the foal of an ass. And the disciples went, and did as Jesus commanded them, And brought the ass, and the colt, and put on them their clothes, and they set him thereon. And a very great multitude spread their garments in the way; others cut down branches from the trees, and strawed them in the way. And the multitudes that went before, and that followed, cried, saying, Hosanna to the Son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest. [but notice a second group of people] And when he was come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, Who is this? And the multitude said, This is Jesus the prophet of Nazareth of Galilee". On the one hand there are multitudes praising Him but in the city the ones who did not go out to meet Him were asking, "Who is this?" The other multitude answered the question. But since it was Pesach, those who did not know him, out-numbered those who did. These were the people that the chief priests were able to stir up. However, by Shavuot even many of them had changed there minds and embraced Jesus as their Saviour and Messiah. See also Acts 21:20, " And when they heard it, they glorified the Lord, and said unto him [Paul], Thou seest, brother, how many thousands [pl.] of Jews there are which believe; and they are all zealous of the law: ". Now let's take a good look at Pilate's role. Many fault Pilate with trying to free himself from guilt by washing his hands. But I'm not sure that that's what he was trying to do. I believe it was a public display of his disagreement with the whole matter since he was not able to stop it. Pilate had tried hard to let Jesus go. Mt.27:15-25 reads, " Now at that feast the governor was wont to release unto the people a prisoner, whom they would. And they had then a notable prisoner, called Barabbas. Therefore when they were gathered together, Pilate said unto them, Whom will ye that I release unto you? Barabbas, or Jesus which is called Christ? For he knew that for envy they had delivered him. When he was set down on the judgment seat, his wife sent unto him, saying, Have thou nothing to do with that just man: for I have suffered many things this day in a dream because of him. But the chief priests and elders persuaded the multitude that they should ask Barabbas, and destroy Jesus. The gov ernor answered and said unto them, Whether of the twain will ye that I release unto you? They said, Barabbas. Pilate saith unto them, What shall I do then with Jesus which is called Christ? They all say unto him, Let him be crucified. And the governor said, Why, what evil hath he done? But they cried out the more, saying, Let him be crucified. When Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing, but that rather a tumult was made, he took water, and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this just person: see ye to it". And again from Luke 23:20-23, " Pilate therefore, willing to release Jesus, spake again to them. But they cried, saying, Crucify him, crucify him. And he said unto them the third time, Why, what evil hath he done? I have found no cause of death in him: I will therefore chastise him, and let him go. And they were instant with loud voices, requiring that he might be crucified. And the voices of them and of the chief priests prevailed". And again Acts 3:13, " The God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob, the God of our fathers, hath glorified his Son Jesus; whom ye delivered up, and denied him in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let him go." Pilate had pronounced Jesus innocent, and declared Him a "Just person" - Mt.27:4. Also it was with those who delivered Jesus to Pilate that he found fault. But the truth is, Pilate was not able to let Jesus go. John 19:10-11, " Then saith Pilate unto him, Speakest thou not unto me? knowest thou not that I have power to crucify thee, and have power to release thee? Jesus answered, Thou couldest have no power at all against me, except it were given thee from above: therefore he that delivered me unto thee hath the greater sin." Now if Pilate, the Roman governor, could not have any power to kill nor release Jesus, how could the Jews have? In fact, there were attempts made on Jesus' life before. See Lk.4:28-30; Jn.5:18, 8:59, 10:31,39. Let us remember, that " The wages of sin is death; " - Romans 6:23. Since Jesus never sinned, it would be impossible for Him to die. This is why He could go forty days and forty nights without food or water in the Judean wilderness. Until you see the Judean wilderness for yourself it would be hard to appreciate what He really endured. Forty days without food has been done by others but never forty days without water in the desert. He must have endured some terrible suffering out there in the wilderness. But the only way He could die would be to offer Himself of His own free will. As outward appearances go, you may say, the Jews killed Jesus. But they did not actually do the killing. You may say the Romans killed Jesus. They are the one's who performed the actual crucifixion. Yet when we consult the Word of God on the matter, it may surprise you to find out who really killed Jesus. ISAIAH 53 1 Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed? {report: or, doctrine?: Heb. hearing?} 2 For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. 3 He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. {we hid...: or, he hid as it were his face from us: Heb. as an hiding of faces from him, or, from us} 4 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. 5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. 6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. 7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. 8 He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken. 9 And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth. 10 Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. 11 He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. 12 Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors. According to Isaiah, Jesus was stricken and smitten by God. It was God who laid on Him the iniquity of us all. It was God who was pleased to bruise Him and put Him to grief. It is said that when Jesus was on the cross during the hours of darkness that God turned His back on His Son. That since God could not look upon sin He could not look upon His Son. But once again the Bible tells a different story. " He shall SEE the travail of His soul." The fact is, the Father watched the whole thing. Hab 1:13 says, " Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity: wherefore lookest thou upon them that deal treacherously, and holdest thy tongue when the wicked devoureth the man that is more righteous than he? " This is why many believe God could not look upon His Son. Yet the argument of the prophet was, You are of purer eyes than to behold evil and iniquity, so why do you do it? Pr 15:3 says, " The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the good." John 3:16, a verse most of us are familiar with, says, " For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. " Not only did the Father offer Jesus as a sacrifice for the sins of man, but so too it is written that Jesus offered Himself in complete harmony and obedience to the Father. " And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross." - Philippians 2:8. Jesus obedience unto death was to the Father, not man. John 2:18-22 says, " Then answered the Jews and said unto him, What sign shewest thou unto us, seeing that thou doest these things? Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt thou rear it up in three days? But he spake of the temple of his body. When therefore he was risen from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this unto them; and they believed the scripture, and the word which Jesus had said". Jesus' own words were that He would destroy the temple of His body and in three days H e would raise it up again. Jesus said it again in John 10:17-18, Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father". You will notice that Jesus said, " I lay down my life...no man taketh it from me...I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down..." How can you get any plainer than that? In John 10:15 He said, " I lay down my life for the sheep ". So on the one hand you have all these people saying that the Jews killed Jesus but on the other hand you have Jesus saying that's not true. Whose word will take for it? We all share responsibility for the death of Jesus. Jesus died for our sins, not our righteousness. In fact Isaiah declares, " Isa 64:6 " But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away". When Adam sinned in the garden, he tried to cover his nakedness with fig leaves. This is what Adam provided for himself. But God was not impressed. The only sacrifice that God was willing to accept from Adam was the one He Himself provided for Adam and Eve. It's no different today. We all have sinned and come short of the glory of God - Romans 3:23. And the only sacrifice for man's sin that God is willing to accept for our salvation is the One He Himself provided. So it was not man who provided Jesus as a sacrifice for himself. It was God who provided Jesus as a sacrifice on behalf of man. So we need to stop laying blame for His death and receive the blessing of eternal life made po ssible only by His death, burial, and resurrection. JOHN 3:14-21 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.